Building for the future

I AM very pleased the construction of the Leeds Arena is under way. I’m particularly pleased that written into the building contract is a requirement that construction workers come from the local area in which the arena will be built. This means that 83 young people in Little London and nearby will benefit from employment and the training and experience that come with it.

This is something I was very keen for both the previous and current council administrations to ensure was in the contract for the arena; I’m delighted that the proposal has finally come to fruition.

If we can make sure that other big construction projects in Leeds directly benefit the areas in which they’re situated, it will be a really important way of making sure that the economic recovery benefits the whole city.

I hope this is a principle that can be extended to some of the other big construction projects that we’ve got coming up.